Human studies utilizing MRI have advanced our understanding of the regional and functional interplay between populations of neurons serving sensory, integrative and motor functions. Changes in neuronal activity are accompanied by specific changes in hemodynamics such as cerebral blood flow, cerebral blood volume, and blood oxygenation. Functional MRI has been used to detect these changes in response to visual stimulation, somatosensory activation, motor tasks, and emotional and cognitive activity.
Braining imaging in animals using SPECT, PET and MR are common practices in academia and the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Key to any brain imaging study is: 1) securing the head to prevent motion artifact caused by movement and 2) minimizing the discomfort to the animals. At present, head immobilization is achieved through surgically implanted head posts that can be anchored to the hardware in the imaging equipment or by ear bars and skull pins compressed against the head originating from various head support structures anchored to the imaging equipment. Head posts are invasive, while ear bars and skull pins are painful and require the application of local anesthetics to the area of contact to minimize discomfort. These problems are motion and pain reduction are exacerbated in awake animal imaging, which represents a practice that is supplanting the use of anesthetics when imaging the brain.
Thus, there is a need for an animal holder that provides an alternative means for head immobilization which overcomes the disadvantages of the conventional techniques mentioned above.